CALHOUN, Ga. – In retrospect, it might have been the worst thing the Manchester Blue Devils could have done.
The underdog visitors scored on their first possession, went for two and made it and found themselves leading unbeaten and third-ranked Calhoun 8-0 in the first round of the GHSA Class AA playoffs Friday night. Once prodded, though, the Yellow Jackets scored the next 44 points for a 44-8 win, setting up next week’s matchup with Westminster at Phil Reeve Stadium.
“It was like waking up a sleeping giant,” said senior quarterback Landon Curtis, who led Calhoun’s fast-paced attack with 328 yards passing and four touchdowns. “We kind of struggled our first two possessions, but after that we played Calhoun football.”
The score was still 8-3 late in the first quarter when Curtis, his array of receivers and star running back Dustin Christian started to click. The Jackets needed just four plays to cover 83 yards for the go-ahead score, with Christian ripping off runs of 20 and 25 yards and Curtis hitting two passes, the second one 17 yards to J.T. Palmer for the touchdown.
The next drive covered 71 yards in a more pedestrian eight plays, with Curtis doing the honors on a 2-yard keeper. Calhoun scored again on a 44-yard play, Curtis ripping the Blue Devils defense with strong throws over the middle to Clay Johnson and Ben Lamb, then fullback Tony Hernandez scoring from a yard out.